Saleh Fareed

Saudi Gazette

JEDDAH — Samba Juniors team from the Western Province became the fifth team to qualify for the final round of the Red Bull Winning 5 Tournament to be held here at Red Sea Mall Friday.



Faisal Abdul Hadi, Director of the Presidency of Youth and Welfare Office in the Western Province, attended the tournament along with a large number of football enthusiasts.



There were teams from Dammam, Al-Khobar, Sihat, Al-Jubail and Al-Ahsa. The Samba Junior players pressed very hard and dominated the match to prove that they are the best among the eight teams to beat the tough contender, the Samba Seniors, in the final.



Abubaker Saeed, leader of Samba Juniors praised the performance of his teammates. He said: “The players really showed their best and deserved to play in the final round in Jeddah.”



He also lauded the great efforts of Red Bull team in making this event a big success.



The Western Province witnessed a big surprise when the 13-year-old Abdullah Al-Shawi, goalkeeper of Al-Malaki team, single-handedly defeated Al-Jalawiah in penalty shots after his teammates were eliminated during the regular time of the match.



The Red Bull Winning 5, which originated in Saudi Arabia, is a five-on-five soccer tournament with a difference. 



Each time a team scores a goal, the team that concedes the goal must eliminate one of its teammates. The winner is the first team to eliminate all players of the opposite team or the team with most goals at full time (10 minutes).